How The Games Are Played
by This Is My Pen Name Be Jealous
Summary: What would happen if the Captiol never stopped Katniss and Peeta from eating the berries? An alternate ending to the Hunger Games.


**Disclaimer: I do not own the Hunger Games.**

How the Games Are Played: An Alternate Ending to The Hunger Games.

Something felt off. What was taking them so long? Normally in the games, the Capitol comes for the victor right after the last kill. So why weren't they coming? All she wanted was to go home, back to District 12, back to her family. Why did they continue to torment her, making her wait even longer?

She looked over at Peeta, blood was gushing out of the side of his leg. If the Capitol didn't come soon, he wouldn't make it. She tried to stop the bleeding, but it wasn't working. She watched him as he lay there next to the river. She watched his chest slowly rise and then fall, a steady rhythm. She wondered how many more times she would be able to watch this happen. She looked up into his eyes, and in them, she saw fear. She saw panic. He also knew that if the Capitol didn't come soon, he wouldn't make it home.

They sat there waiting, waiting for an answer that would ease their fears. An answer telling them that they would be going home soon. But one did not come. It did not come in a second, or a minute, or an hour. It seemed as though they were waiting for something to happen. Waiting for what, she didn't know. And so they just lay there, by the river, for the Capitol to tell them what to do.

As night fell, the familiar voice of Caeser rang out through the stadium. He said that they had checked the rules of the games and came to the conclusion that there could only be one winner and so one of them had to kill the other for it to be over.

Immediately, Katniss picked up her bow and arrow and aimed it straight at Peeta's heart. She stared right into his fear filled eyes and contemplated whether or not she could really do it. As she stood there, he began to beg her to do it. He begged her to kill him, he told her that she deserved to win, that he had nothing to go back to. But staring into his eyes, she knew she could never do it. How could she live with herself, she thought, if she killed him?

As she lowered her bow, she saw the disappointment flash across his face, but along with that, she saw something else...hope maybe?

She stood there, trying to think how they could both survive this, but nothing came to mind. It was hard to think while Peeta was rambling on about how he was going to bleed to death any way so she should just speed up the process. She thought about this, it did make sense, there was no way Peeta was going to last for more than a couple of hours. She stared down at her bow; there was only one arrow left. That's all it would take, just one arrow to end his life. One arrow to win. One arrow to go home.

Just when she was about to pick it up, she saw a small bag in the corner of her eye. And in that bag, she knew, was the answer.

Slowly, she reached for the bag and opened it. She poured out the berries on to her hand and looked up at Peeta. He looked excited, like he knew exactly what she was thinking.

"There has to be a winner right?" She asked.

"Right." He replied as he held out his hand. In it, she put four berries.

"On the count of three?" she asked. He just nodded in reply.

"One.." She said as she raised up her hand.

"Two..."He continued as he copied her movements.

"Three." She finished and placed the berries in her mouth.

She looked up at Peeta to see that he had done the same thing. Slowly, she began to chew the berries and then, finally, she swallowed. Seconds later, her world faded to black.

{*}

"And now, it is my great pleasure, to introduce to you," Caesar shouted to the crowd, "The winner of the 74th annual Hunger Games, Peeta Mellark!"

Slowly, Peeta limped onto the stage where Caesar stood waiting for him. When he reached him, he gently shook his hand and then proceeded to sit in the chair that he was directed to. For the next hour, they watched a replay of the games which was followed by the interview, which was now almost over.

"Well Peeta, we have time for one more question," Caesar started, "Tell me, why didn't you eat the berries too, as planned? Why is it that you spit them out at the last second?"

"Why did I do it?" He asked, "Why did I spit them out? I did, because that's how I planned it. Do you honestly think that I didn't suspect what the Capitol was doing? That I didn't have a backup plan, a plan 'B'? That I didn't know that those berries were poisonous when I first picked them? Do you honestly think that I wanted to die? Of course I didn't. You see Caesar, I've had this entire game completely planned out. I had the perfect strategy to win."

When Peeta finished, the entire stadium was silent. They stared up at him, shocked at his confession.

He looked around him, at every one in the crowd and Caeser and said with a grin, "Why the shocked expressions? I mean, that's how the games are played, right?"

**A/N: So as always, I'd like to thank The Invisible Ninja for proof reading this. Also, I'd like to thank the Hunger Games Club at my school, with out them, i would've never been inspired to write this. Reviews as always, are greatly welcomed.**


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